STANSFELD 1 WHITSTABLE TOWN 0
SCEFL Premier Division
Saturday September 28 2024 15.00

The traffic delays on Kent roads, coupled with a recent change of Stansfeld’s home ground, meant some Whitstable supporters arrived late or not at all, although those that were amongst the sparse crowd could be forgiven for thinking their football team had failed to turn up as they offered very little to get excited about. A bright opening with a couple of dangerous crosses into the box proved a false dawn, as some sloppy play soon gifted Rob Hughes the chance to give Stansfeld an early lead and that was enough to decide the outcome, as neither goalkeeper had much to do for the remainder of a poor game.

Stansfeld now play their home games at Cray Valley’s ground, having moved from their previous home at Glebe Football Club. Four points separated the teams prior to kick off with Stansfeld hoping to close the gap. Striker Dean Grant was included in the Whitstable line up after re-joining the club from Hollands and Blair. Finn O’Mara returned in defence in place of Jake McIntyre as Whitstable shuffled their team a little following their midweek defeat. Despite struggling to win at home, Whitstable had not lost an away league match since January when going down 3-1 at Corinthian. A reasonable number of away supporters successfully negotiated the traffic problems and took their place in the very small crowd, which totalled just 77.

There were a few encouraging signs for Whitstable in the opening minutes, with Grant causing some problems for the home defence. A good cross by Harvey Smith on the left reached Fin Dent in the box, but he was unable to make a decisive connection. After a delay while Grant received some treatment, Reece Gillies sent the ball across to Smith who headed it down for Mike West, but his first time shot from 20 yards went wide. The only goal of the game was scored in the 10th minute when Whitstable tried to play out down their right and Tadiwa Nago intercepted the ball and exchanged passes with Harvey Mead before being fouled, but the referee waved play on and Dario De Luca slipped the ball through to Rob Hughes who found himself with just Dan Colmer to beat and did so from 12 yards. Stansfeld had to make a change on 28 minutes when Ibrahim Barrie replaced the injured Mo Buhari. Apart from a booking for Gillies, there was very little meaningful action until the six added minutes at the end of the first half. A left wing cross to the near post by Grant reached Dent whose effort was deflected for a corner from which West’s delivery was headed towards goal by Smith, but pushed away by Tom Crump for a corner on the other side that Smith headed over.

Josh Oliver came on at the start of the second half in place of Gillies, but it was Stansfeld who created the first couple of half chances. An injured Will Thomas was substituted in the 51st minute with Jake McIntyre taking his place in the Whitstable defence. Oliver was shown a yellow card for going down too easily in the 62nd minute, then a brief spell of Stansfeld pressure saw two attempts blocked. Frank McCormack curled a shot over as changes were made by both managers, then Whitstable appealed in vain for a penalty when West’s ball into the box appeared to strike an arm, but as play continued a Finn O’Mara shot was defected behind. Grant, on the left, then spotted the goalkeeper out of position, but his lob bounced narrowly wide of the far post. Referee Oliver Storey got his yellow card out on two more occasions, firstly for a Smith foul and then for a bit of time wasting by the home goalkeeper Crump.

Whitstable were twice denied what they thought should have been corners as frustrations grew and a good Archie Johnson cross was headed over by Grant, who then turned provider and hooked over a cross that substitute Jayden Boulton nodded wide. A quick Stansfeld break down the left saw Rio Glean curl a shot wide before Whitstable had a last chance to equalise in the final added minute. The referee adjudged that Crump had picked up a deliberate back pass on the right of the penalty area, but as Whitstable packed the box, the free kick went astray and Stansfeld were able to clear easily. It summed up the afternoon really and the final whistle soon followed.

With several players carrying injuries following a busy fixture schedule during the first two months of the season, Whitstable will be glad to have a week off before playing Punjab United in a home league game.

Stansfeld
Tom Crump, Archie Panyi, Frank McCormack, Ollie Andrews (c), Muhammad Buhari (Ibrahim Barrie 28), Stef Kempton, Dario De Luca, Rob Hughes, Harvey Mead, Chris Alhassan (Rio Glean 76), Tadiwa Nago (Jack Mahon 60).
Subs (unused): Kameron Mendez, Greg Williams.
Goal: Rob Hughes 10
Yellow card: Tom Crump 81

Whitstable Town
Dan Colmer, Jerald Aboagye, Archie Johnson, Mike West (c), Finn O’Mara, Will Thomas (Jake McIntyre 51), Dean Grant, Reece Gillies (Josh Oliver 46), Harvey Smith, Fin Dent (Jayden Boulton 80), Archie Hatcher (Omotunmise Akanni 67).
Sub (unused): Dan Eason.
Yellow cards: Reece Gillies 40, Josh Oliver 62, Harvey Smith 79.

Attendance: 77
Referee: Oliver Storey
Assistants: Ben Wright & Joseph Neanor